Home / Archives for December 2018
The holidays are a special time of the year when we recognize and celebrate generously giving to others. During this season we are unselfish as we look for places to serve others through volunteering and supporting charitable organizations. There are many opportunities in every community to spread Christmas Cheer, this special feeling that one feels
This afternoon I learned that someone very special to Nick was going to make a short house-call visit to Nick. Santa Claus was coming to our house so that Nick could meet with him and let him know what he wanted for Christmas. It has been difficult recently to take Nick to public places. Crowds
At the holidays thoughts are turned to home. What actually constitutes our home? Is it where our family lives or where we were raised? Is it where we are employed or is it a place that only exists in our memory? Today we are heading back home for our own holiday season. We have been
The holidays are a special time of the year. The music and holiday movies remind us of the importance of our friends and family. As our lives get busier, we can easily lose the connection with others. Although often it’s not intentional, before we know it, years have passed since we last spent time together.
Discouragement and overwhelm seem to chase me. Yesterday I wasn’t well, and although the sun was shining, I spent the day inside recovering. This morning I woke up, still tired, but no longer sick. I opened the drapes in anticipation, only to discover that it was raining with gray skies as far as I could
The other morning we were stopped at a traffic light and Nick exclaimed, “Look mom, that man fall down.” Just as Nick said that, Arden and I both saw an older gentleman fall to the sidewalk while having a tonic-clonic seizure. Commonly called a Grand Mal seizure, they are recognized by a sudden drop to
Sometimes when the days seem hard, I seek music that will help move me through those dark times. I am grateful for the many songs that combine insightful lyrics with talented vocalists. The song writers and performers are able to express my feelings and help me remember what is important. One line of Celine Dion’s
Sometimes I have wished that kids came with an instruction manual. This is especially true when raising a child with special needs. Most parenting books are designed to help parents gain the skills and expertise needed to raise healthy, well adjusted children. Parents of kids with special needs desire that same thing, but the message
Since, as my kids point out, I have lived in seven decades, I have plenty of life to look back on and I wonder what my life would have been like if I had made different decisions. Growing older, the poem “The Road Not Taken” takes on more significance for me. It is the famous
Music is very important to Nick and often he wakes up singing. Today it was Alabama’s hit “Angels Among Us.” Some of the lyrics are circling my mind long after he had moved onto the next song. “Oh, I believe there are Angels Among Us. Sent down to us from somewhere up above. They come
Announcing that I have finished a book with the working title of “The Fairy Fort.” I am currently pitching it to publishers. Keep checking back to watch the progress of my newest novel.
Here is a quick glimpse of the story.
Sarah Doherty is an 18-year-old living in rural Ireland at the tail end of the Great War. Plagued by severe epilepsy, she is protected by her parents and lives a sheltered, secluded, lonely life. The Fae, local Irish fairies, interfere with her life. She falls forward a century in time through the local fairy fort of standing stones. She had a seizure in 1918 and woke up in 2020. The 21st century world includes life-saving prescriptions, physical comforts and the independence and freedom she seeks. The locals are welcoming and Andy Mclaughlin, a handsome young historian, is intriguing. She doesn’t want to return home.
Then a letter arrives from Boston divulging the story of Sarah and Andy’s lives that are deeply entwined in the previous century. They are not yet in love but as they seek to verify the letter through online resources, they feel a growing obligation to their unborn family and to each other. What would happen to their posterity living in Boston if they don’t return to 1918? Even if they do make it back, her parents can never know what happened to her or that would change everything.
This Young Adult time-travel romance explores the question: Do we have the freedom to make choices or is free will an elaborate illusion?
This is my third book. I love reading time travel romances. I am an advocate for epilepsy awareness because my 43-year-old son has intractable epilepsy. As a genealogist specializing in Irish research, I live part of the year in the village where the story is based. I wrote the book to help young adults understand that difficult situations can change your life. Sometimes miraculously.
